V for Vengance or Vindication?
by shadeofsound23
Summary: Though Trigon is defeated, the Titans will soon discover that Raven is not the only one with personal demons... and that they're not all as strong as Raven when it comes to suppressing them. Rated T for saftey, robXrae, possibly others. First Fic, R&R ple
1. Enter in

Hey y'all this is my first fic, and I hope that this will turn out well. Rated 'T' for safety.

Summary:

Though the greatest menace that the Teen Titans was defeated by Raven, they will soon see that he would not let them walk away with victory so easily... there are other dark beings out there who have pasts as equaly haunting or more; with the curse to match. I take some liberties with the series of events in the show, and other things, so I will have to mark this as slightly AU.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing of this story except the plot, and the shadowed character. Don't steal, don't sue.

Chapter 1: Jekyll and Hyde...

He looked at Jump City, covered by the darkness of night, streetlights twinkling like stars in a concreted sky complimenting those in the horizon. Sounds of a busy city slowly drifted across the distance. Peaceful, at least for tonight. Eyes of red bored through it, piercing it with his gaze, searching for something...

Someone...

_ 'She is here', _ a voice thought, _'his betrayer, is here...'_

Malevolence swept through that voice, thoughts of revenge, of destruction, of the only thing it longed for:

Annihilation.

It knew it's time was near...

_ 'Why are we here?' _ He thought with despair, "_We should leave this place. We have no claim here!"_

_ 'Fool!' _A wave of pain rattled his mind, _'We're here to wreak vengeance on _her_ and spread the destruction our Master would have wanted!'_

_ 'Our Master?' he_ thought, incredulously, _'The same "Master" who was our constant torment? Who forced me to maim and kill countless innocent beings for his pleasure? We want to avenge him?'_

_ 'He didn't force you to kill them...' _the dark part said viciously.

_ 'Yes he did. You did. You made me.' _He shuddered at the nightmares their screams and terrified faces brought to him every night, of cities in ruin, of streets running red with the blood of the fallen..._  
_

_ 'You were too weak to stop us. Then, or now,' _the evil voice did the mental equivalent of a sadistic grin, _'We will be her death, and the death of this world too... like all the others.' _

_ 'No. I'll stop you this time,' _The other part of him asserted, _'The Master cannot beat me down this time, He won't help you!'_

_ 'You are still alone,' _the voice said, _'I am still the only one you have. You'll do as I want, because I _am _you. No comfort, no one to hold, no one to care. No one can stop us. No one will ever understand you. Just me. You'll never be rid of me.' _

_ 'No... I will. Someday I'll be free...' _he thought softly.

_ 'Free?' _The voice laughed, _'What would you do? Where would you go? Who would take you in? _She _wouldn't. She's forgotten all about you. She would never help you. You see? There's no. Way. Out.'_

The voice continued laughing, coldness seeping out of the sound.

_ 'She will not see harm,' _the voice stopped laughing, _'I will not let you hurt her. She does not deserve us doing this.__ She's found a new life, she has a _chance _now to live without the chains of her doomed destiny hounding her!'_

_ 'What are you saying? She betrayed us! She _abandoned _us!' _it hissed with rage.

_ 'No, you're lying! She would never abandon us to Him willingly! She left to save countless lives! Countless worlds! It was necessary! We both knew that! I had to stay, to make sure she could survive and defeat Him! I helped her go... she wouldn't forget... about me...'_

_ 'Are you so sure? Why did she not help us? Why did she not come for us even after His fall?' _The voice stated vehemently, _'We will be her demise, and all you did to save her will all be for naught. You will watch her die, slowly, and there is nothing you can do to stop it.'_

Mad laughter ensued, the voice in the head of the shadowed figure cackling madly, echoing off invisible walls, driving any semblance of sanity away...

"NO!" The figure shouted out loud, to no one. But the voice still echoed...

_ 'You will watch her suffer,'_

_ 'You will watch her world collapse around her,'_

_ 'You will watch her die.'_

_ 'There is nothing you can do to stop it.'_

"No..." He said again, softer.

The figure fought against the influence of the darkness inside of him, of the final orders given by a master he abhorred with every ounce of determination, with all his strength, but still he moved inexorably towards the city...

Towards _her_...

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Across the distance, Raven woke with a start, feeling the pressure of a growing threat in the shadows of her mind. Though when she reached out, the danger itself was hazy, and slipped through the fingers of her mental grasp, yet was still there, almost tangibly there...

Shaking her head, she grabbed her cloak and swirled it around her body. She opened the door with a muffled _whoosh _and walked quietly down to the kitchen.

_'What is this?' _She thought, silently contemplating as she made herself a pot of herbal tea. She felt a sudden flash of irritation at the question she posed herself, expecting to know that answer already. She put her irritation down to the fact that she had a restless night and once again schooled herself back into her usual mental discipline. _'Though it's more than sleeplessness. Why can't I sense it? It's so... muddled.'  
_  
She moved over to the window overlooking the city. Dark clouds were beginning to roll over the empty night sky, as if fate herself was foreshadowing events to come... once again.

She looked out, letting the steaming tea in her hand grow cold while she lost herself in thought...

(A/N) short chapter, more like a prologue. Thanks for reading, say I'm welcome by R&R!


	2. Naggings of the Mind

Thanks for the reviews. They really help. Sorry for my tardiness, life happens. :)

Enjoy! Titleless chapter so far, name's up for suggestion.

Chapter 2

Robin, as usual, was in the training area, staying after the Titans normal session was over. They were sharpening themselves to combat the new threat that Slade had unleashed upon the city, again, after returning with body whole and mind scheming.

_'Slade,' _Robin thought, the mere sound of the name deepening the strikes against the punching bag.

_FWAP! FWAP! FWAP!  
_

He stopped, the sound of chains swinging with the bag filling his ears. He felt... unfocused. Something was nagging him...

Or was it him?

He thought of Raven, feeling the tugging sensation in the part of his mind he shared with her. Something was bothering her, and he knew it. He just didn't know what. It concerned him for her to be this way, understanding that focus was just as important to her as it was to him...

'_Understanding...her...' _the thought stuck in his mind.

He shook off the slight flutter in his stomach, hoping that she didn't feel that through their bond. If she was already distracted, _that _certainly wouldn't help matters. Besides, she didn't need a... a... _that_; right now, she needed a good friend, someone to confide in, someone to depend on.

_'Wouldn't that be part of the deal?' _A hushed idea drifted across his mind. He shook his head to clear it from the images that followed, _'I can't think about myself right now. If I really cared for her, I'd be content with her friendship; we don't need the pressure that a relationship like that would bring. All this could merely be teenage hormones, and then what would happen? I would lose my best friendship all for selfishness.'_

Deciding that he wasn't going to be able to concentrate on his exercise, he gave the punching bag a few goodbye whacks and left the training room. He went to his room to change out of his sweaty clothes and shower. Hoping that Raven would still be where he thought she'd be meditating, he went to the roof of the tower, mulling over the thoughts he felt shouldn't be associated with Raven. He found her cross-legged in lotus position, chanting softly with her soft voice... He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts of distractions.

_'Besides,' _he thought quietly as he approached her, _'there's no way to tell if she feels the same.'_

"Raven?" He asked softly, not wanting to startle her out of her meditative state. He considered placing a hand on her shoulder, but it turned out to not be necessary.

She settled slowly to the ground, looking agitated at being disturbed from her mental exercise, and turned to Robin a little sharply, "Yes?"

Robin stepped back half a step, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude,"

She sighed and turned away, "Yes you did," a slight smile touched her lips, "it's alright, I couldn't concentrate anyway,"

"I noticed," Robin said dryly.

She raised her eyebrow in question, and Robin merely replied, _'Our bond,' _

The slight smile was back again_, 'Of course,'_ she thought as she got up and faced him.

He sat down at the edge of the roof, and she followed. They sat there for a while, enjoying the sun, and secretly each other's presence, hoping the other wouldn't notice. Raven thought back to last night, wondering if she should trouble the Boy Wonder with sneaking suspicions and whispers in darkness...

"Raven, is there something wrong?" Robin looked over, concern written clearly on his masked face.

She considered denying it for a moment, but decided against it, "I don't know."

Robin merely raised an eyebrow. Raven sighed, then continued.

"I think that I'm sensing a coming danger, but it's unclear... hazy..." she said, shaking her head with confusion.

"What could that mean? Could Slade be planning something?" He asked, concern now turned into full-blown worry.

"I don't know, it could be something from the past, or future, distant or near... that's why it's so distracting, because I have no idea what it could be."

"Did you sense the same thing with your father?"

"Yes, but that was different. I knew what was coming, and I could associate that feeling with the knowledge, but this I have no clue to what it pertains to. I didn't want to announce it to the team, or you, because I wasn't sure if it was anything at all." She looked out to the horizon, watching the city bathed in sunlight, amethyst eyes glittering with anxiety.

Robin gazed out at the sky a moment before answering, "Raven, I know that this must be hard, but understand that the team trusts your abilities, and your control. They trust you. I trust you." He let the last part slip out almost unconsciously.

She was about to answer when the alarm blared over their communicators. They rushed down to the living levels to see a sickeningly familiar mask.

"Slade." Robin hissed.

"So glad to know that you haven't forgotten me. I'm almost tempted to tell you my new plans this time, in respect for our lasting friendship and all, but that would spoil the _fun, _wouldn't it?" His one eye narrowed, "Besides, I know how you enjoy playing the detective, Robin."

Robin's masked eyes narrowed dangerously, "We'll stop you again, Slade. You won't beat us this time."

He consciously unknotted his balled fists, _'I can't let him get to me so easily anymore; I can't let him gain an edge.'_

"Now _Robin,"_ Slade chided in a maddening voice, "When did I ever imply that I wanted to _beat _you? I merely want to see if you can _stop_ me."

The transmission cut off abruptly, punctuated by a certain fist of a Boy Wonder slamming into the console. Hard.

_'Slade, why can't it ever end? You've gone into hiding, gone into my head, and died once, yet still keep coming back. When will it end?'_

He snapped his head up abruptly, _'It WILL end, one way only. You're going down Slade. Again.'_

"Titan's, GO!"

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Slade was altogether pleased with himself. It wasn't the plan, nor the fact that he was still alive, though those served to make the reason much sweeter than it already was.

Robin had been the leader of the mighty Teen Titans for quite some time now; he went through countless battles, dark situations, and even the end of the world, but Slade could still push his buttons as easily as if he was an ametuer. Slade smirked beneath his mask, allowing himself the control of a facial expression that Robin used, that he used without competition.

Almost.

Slade looked out onto the area he deemed the arena for the coming battle; he looked at his plan, which was really - extremely convincing - bait. He sighed, knowing that the mere prospect of a bomb threatening to destroy the city would seem like a tired old ploy, but hoped that his twist on a classic would be rather... hard to merely dismiss as your run of the mill bomb. Neutron bombs promised wide destruction in maximun pain - hyper-accelerating the metabolism of the body, making its victims grow old and die within mere tenths of seconds. Morbid, yet amusing.

He observed his mechanical army he had created for this occasion, and Cinderblock newly released from prison; they obeyed his will with perfect precision, perfect loyalty. The thought of loyalty brought him back to the attempts to obtain an apprentice, which ended in defeat and death. _'Two times down,' _He thought, _'the third will not be so kind.'_

He sighed again. Such were the risks of playing the only game he knew.

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In the bowels of the stretches of the city, a figure smothered in shadow stirred.

Eyes the color of dried blood revealed themselves from behind obsidian eyelids, sending a slight wave of power off from the individual.

_'She's moving.' _He thought, _"Where is she going in such a rush?"_

_"Why do we hesitate? Attack now while she is away from her protections!" _The dark voice inside him spat.

_"No, she's going somewhere, a reason... to fight..." _He searched with his mind for anything familiar... _"I smell the stench of Trigon... Him! Spade... no... Slade!"_

_"Another traitor! We will decimate him. Unleash us upon him and let him weep for mercy, or we will take us there by force!" _The voice hissed half-pleadingly.

The figure stood slowly, barely restraining the darkness inside of him from freeing his power. He could feel it inside him, tearing at him, taunting him, begging him just to release himself to it... to loose it to fulfill its lust for destruction.

He allowed himself a tight smile. This time he would willingly let himself go, and have nothing on his conscience for it.

He melted into shadow, dispersing through the cracks of the city, towards his meeting with Slade, neither regarding nor wondering that he was, for once, following his orders by his own choice.

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_'Finding Slade was easy enough for us,'_ Cyborg thought cynically, _'it's kinda hard to miss a thousand-robot army wandering around Jump Cit__y.'_

Just as Robin and Slade were about to get into another round of mind games, Cyborg noticed a patch of black, like Raven's magic, converge between the Titans and the army. He looked over to where Raven was standing, and noticed she was slighty paler than usual. He caught her eye, and she shook her head, indicating that she had nothing to do with whatever was out there. Before he had a chance to tell Robin, however, a shape emerged from the pool of blackness.

A man, or what looked like a man. He was covered in what looked like head to toe in thin tatoos, that seemed to follow vains on his body, streaming out from his eyes and corners of his mouth. Cyborg tried to place the color of the tatoos, but they weren't even onyx in color. It was like they were a cancerous growth of nothingness spiderwebbing themselves across his body.

He looked the newcomer in the eyes and shuddered. They glowed a dull red that seemed to pierce everything in their gaze, and he suddenly felt very exposed under his tungsten-titanium alloyed armor...

The last-minute arrival turned at speared Slade with a look of pure bloodlust, the energies converging around his hands spitting out ebony lightning, tearing deep furrows into the street and surrounding buildings. The very concrete he stood on, the trees around him, even the very monolithic, impassive structures around them seemed to seep fear at his presence, as if to try to shield themselves from his wrath.

"I come now for Slade." It was a strong voice, clear and crisp, yet without origin or direction.

Everyone looked around at that statement. The guy hadn't even moved his lips, let alone in a oratorical fashion enough to let him speak like that! Raven came up to Robin and whispered,

"That's it."

Robin nodded, not moving, not even speaking. He watched in horrified curiousity as the figure raised one hand, fingers splayed, towards the robot army, a feral grin clearly written across his face.

"This isn't good."

Thanks for the previous reviews, and I'm sorry for taking so long to put this up. I know there's not a whole lot of action just yet, but I promise there will be very soon. Thanks for reading, and thanks to my few but wonderful reviewers:

1x1pEngUI89

Moving Mountains

evilsangel

Bunnysquirrel


	3. First Appearance

Alright! Moving into some serious action here!

Chapter Three : The Third Time's the Charm.

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It was quiet, aside from the occaional rustling of restless leaves. Between the two opposing forces of Slade and the Titans, a third had taken shape; a man now stood silently, yet his very presence was shouting loudly.

His pale tendril-tattooed arm was outstretched towards the robot army, black energies converging and occasionally pulsing out from his open-splayed hand to shoot ebony lightning that crackled thunder to break the silence. The black robe he was wearing, tattered through wear and split down the middle, was ruffling from the spurts of power. The sleeves were nonexistent, as they were torn at the shoulders, showing muscular, albeit pale, arms. The hood on the robe was thrown back, allowing the long shocking grayish white hair to be visible, tied back so that there were only two locks of hair on either side of his pale face, which wore the grin of a predator about to strike its prey. Besides the robe and hair, he wore a simple pair of jeans and a snug-fitting t-shirt, which was also sleeveless. If it wasn't for the robe or terrible power, he might have been halfway normal...

Except for the eyes... which were trained intently upon the sladebot army, glowing brighter.

Robin shuddered. The man was definitely not out to make new friends. Yet, despite the obvious, there was something about him strange...

Raven tightened the grip she now had on his shoulder, "That's who I've been sensing."

He merely nodded, as he watched Slade give the order to attack the newcomer.

But the sladebots didn't attack. They barely moved. The Titans looked closely at the robots, and saw that the head of every android they could see was covered in dark energy. They looked back to the figure, who simply closed his hand into a fist, as easily as one would crush a soda can...

The Titans covered their ears as hundreds of violent crunching sounds filled the air.

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_'Too easy,' _He thought with a snort, allowing the predatory grin to soften into a smirk, _'Already this _mighty army_ has fallen...'_

_'Yes...' _The evil voice inside him agreed, _'Pity. Not as much satisfaction as slaughtering _live _opponents...'_

He shuddered internally, lowering his closed fist, _'Shut up. I agreed with you to take Slade. We have a job to finish here.'_

_'Of course,' _The voice said mockingly.

He glanced over the fallen bodies and saw that a few had escaped his terrible attack. A slight wave of irritation precluded the voice saying sadistically, _'Good. We could use the warm up.'_

The smirk became genuine. He waited for them to attack – no reason for him to rush his _warm up_...

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Robin watched the bodies fall, the sound deafening his senses. He was almost impressed, _'I bet Raven could've done the same, if she had wanted to.'_

She glanced up at him, a grave look in her eye, _'No I couldn't. I don't have that fine of control on such a large scale.'  
_

Nodding, now astonished, he turned back to the battlefield. He saw that some of the victims had survived, and were moving towards the dark figure quickly, intending to carry out their master's orders. The man didn't show any indication of anxiety, nor of anticipation as the drones rushed towards him. The first one reached him...

And was ripped apart by a torrent of dark energy as the man released his powers.

The next was shattered when it found itself on the wrong end of a telekinetic blast.

The third jumped high, landing behind the figure, and was summarily impaled, entangled, and torn into pieces by what seemed to be thin shadows that leapt out of the ground.

The fourth attacked from the air, sending a flying kick towards the man's face. The figure caught it with his left hand and a chuckle, stopping the android mid-strike. He brought his right fist down on the robot's knee, breaking the joint, then flung the maimed sladebot into the next two with great force, destroying all three in a tangle of machinery.

The next swung razor claws at his neck, but was avoided and slammed with a fist into the chest – **through** the chest. With a disgusted look he flung the inoperative machination off of his arm – a crashing sound was heard in the distance.

The few that were left were dealt viscous attacks that split some of them in two. The very last sladebot was enveloped in dark energy and lifted up. The Titans watched in horror as the unfortunate robot first started twitching, then shaking, then convulsing violently as sickening snapping sounds followed the breaks of what seemed to be every joint in its body. Beast boy almost lost his tofu as he watched the fingers bend in circles the complete opposite way they were supposed to go. Then a loud 'pop' was heard and the robot's head was twisted at a very unnatural angle. The dark figure made a dismissive gesture and the disfigured automaton dropped to the ground with a muffled 'thud'.

The figure stood at rest, hands unclenched by his sides. Robin caught a faint glance of a black stone in his forehead as he shifted his stance. _'A chakra stone? But that would mean...' _His train of thought was cut off by a ear-ringing roar and crash. Cinderblock had jumped onto the battlefield, and was thundering his way over the bodies of the fallen towards the dark man. Metal and electronics splintered under his footsteps, adding to the already undeniable tension.

_CRUNCH CRUNCH CRUNCH_

Cinderblock raised his fist above his head, preparing to bring it crashing down into the dark figure's face, yet the newcomer did not move...

_CRUNCH CRUNCH CRUNCH_

The seemingly-unstoppable force let out a mighty bellow as he let loose the strike he held...

Starfire covered her mouth, Cyborg covered his ears, and Beast Boy covered his eyes as they waited for the shattering of bone to fill the air...

The man still didn't move, didn't twitch; he only had that small smirk on his face as he watched the brick wall barreling down on him.

"Guy's gonna need some serious plastic surgery after this," Beast Boy muttered.

_BOOOM!_

Beast Boy peeked through his fingers to see what everyone was gaping at; Slade even looked surprised, if that was at all possible behind his mask. It was for good reason, however, because the scene before them was something to be astonished of.

Cinderblock's fist now was smack-dab in the middle of the figure's face, and it hadn't even made him budge. His robe, which was blown straight back by the force of the strike, was settling itself around its wearer again. Cinderblock gave a grunt in surprise and removed his fist from his opponent's face. They all saw that there was no indication of injury, and incredibly he was still smiling.

The voice that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere spoke again, "One."

Cinderblock angrily threw his other fist at the figure, which the man swiftly caught and used the momentum to fling Cinderblock into the building far behind him. The stone man crashed unceremoniously through the concrete wall, and the voice came again.

"Two."

Cinderblock emerged from the hole he had inadvertently created with a steel girder. The beam had broken on one end, making it pointed. With a sick grin, Cinderblock flung the girder at the gray-haired figure with incredible accuracy and speed, sharp end first. The black-robed man held out his hand, palm forward, causing the girder to stop in a bubble of telekinetic energy. He withdrew his hand, letting the beam fall to the ground with a clang.

"Three," The voice said, "My turn."

And with a puff of smoky tendrils a a loud whooshing sound, the figure disappeared. He quickly reappeared behind Cinderblock and uppercut him high into the air over the street. Flying up faster than his target, he intercepted Cinderblock and slammed him down into the pavement with a double-fisted hit. He then outstretched his hand and a powerful blast of black energy stormed down, cratering Cinderblock further into the ground, and the figure lowered himself back to the pavement. After silence once again settled onto the scene, the stone man lay very still, and Slade spoke.

"Impressive, most impressive," He leapt down to the asphalt, "I fail to see why you are after me, however."

"In due time," the voice said while the figure turned towards Slade with a smile and soft chuckle.

Slade rushed at him with full fury, staff extended, and swung. The robed man ducked and grabbed the staff quick as lightning, and slammed Slade in the side of the head with it. Slade flew away from his assailant, but was quickly caught by the newcomer's telekinetic powers before he could recover and shot up and around in an arc to slam into the concrete on the other end, snapping several major bones. Still held under the influence of his dark energies, Slade was brought to the gray-haired figure, who snapped his hand out to clasp Slade's forehead. Slade reflexed, bringing both his hands down on the single one that held him captive now, telekinetic powers being released, yet the hand did not budge. The dark figure opened his mouth to speak.

"Trigon sends you, _betrayer_, his regards." Said the raspy whisper that escaped the figure's lips.

Slade's eye widened at this, and he tried all the harder to push the offending hand away. _'Third time's the worst,' _his own thoughts taunted him. The figure merely tightened his grip and spoke once more.

"Embrace your final death."

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The Teen Titans watched as the robed figure held Slade in the palm of his hand and whisper something. Then, the scene changed dramatically as the tattoos on the figure's arm began to _move._ The cancerous tendrils seeped down onto Slade's mask, spider webbing down his face and body, out to his arms and legs. Slade began to twitch and shiver uncontrollably, as though he was cold. The figure released the convulsing body of their hated enemy and the Titans watched as the tendrils spread more and more, spreading the disease of nothingness across his form. Finally Slade laid still on the pavement, the tendrils consuming his body, turning it into ash. A wind picked up, carrying the once-powerful villain to the four corners of the earth – a peaceful end to a violent death. The dark figure turned to the stunned teens, eyes flashing.

They readied themselves quickly; Raven's emotions were raving wildly, _'That's _him_! We know it's him! No one else can do that type of attack!'_

_'I know,' _Raven thought, calming herself, finding her center, _'But we can't flee just yet, we have to see what he wants.'_

The darkened figure smiled wickedly, straight at Raven, yet at almost the same instant, the smile vanished. The troubled look that replaced it accompanied the disappearance of the red glow in his eyes. She heard a strong voice in her thoughts that seemed to radiate from him.

_'Raven, you must leave quickly. Defend yourself from me... I cannot hold it forever.' _The voice said, obviously strained.

_'Is it you? Are you my...' _Raven thought desperately before she was cut-off.

_'There might be time for questions later, but I need _you_ to make sure there is a later! I can't hold out against the demon forever!'_

At that comment the red glow in his eyes returned, and he raised his hand and lashed out with his telekinetic powers. Raven quickly stepped forward, eyes blazing white with power, and raised a shield to block; she then countered, blasting him with a tremendous shock wave that sent him sprawling, flying down to the end of the road into an unfortunate building. She turned to the others and raised her hands to teleport them back to the tower.

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Amid the rubble the figure contemplated the outcome of today.

_'We finished the job I allowed you to do. He's dead.' _He thought.

_'Yes... it was... satisfying indeed. However, Raven managed to knock us around a bit. And she got _away_. I wonder why?' _The voice said accusingly, anger burning in the words.

_'Yes, she did,' _Ignoring the last question, the figure brought a hand to his face as he rose from the rubble with ease. He brought it away with a tinge of red on it, clearly surprised, _'She's gotten much more powerful since I last saw her.'_

_'Good,' _The voice said, relishing in the pain, _'We need the challenge.'_

He smirked, and thought in a secret place in his mind that the voice couldn't hear, _'She's beaten Trigon, our accursed father, and grown stronger for it. Perhaps...' _He let the hopefulness in his thought remain secret, lest the voice hear and take steps against it...

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Back at the tower, Raven found herself once more under the questioning looks of her friends. She took in a calming breath, trying to regain her strength that she spent with that attack. Beast Boy spoke up first.

"Dude! Who was that guy?"

Robin spoke next, "He had a chakra stone on his forehead that seemed familiar,"

Cyborg pointed out, "Hell man, his powers seemed familiar too!"

Starfire merely said, "It is strange, but I sense that I know this person, or someone akin to him..."

A long pause brought back the uneasy silence.

She took in another calming breath, and spoke slowly, "His name is Edorchan; he is my half-brother, and heir to the throne of Trigon the Terrible."

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A/N Hey what'd you guys think? I think that this action scene turned out well, though writing about what happened to Slade was easier than I thought, I mean, the guy's only human, right?

So with the highly anticipated reveal of the mystery character, what will the Teen Titans decide to do? Typical speculation, suspense, yada yada... Tune in next week, hopefully I'll have the answer!

To my reviewers (thanks for reviewing first all) tell me what you thought of the name, I spent a lot of time looking through meanings to find that one.

A thanks to my previous reviewers!

Evilsangel – I hope that he didn't disappoint, thanks for sticking around ;-)

DarkenedMaster – I think that my entry can be made now that I've revealed him, and it's nice to have a potential spot waiting for him once I finish with this story, which could end soon or not, depending on time constraints.

Lilith Lunatic – I'm glad you thought so, thanks for reviewing.

WillowSpikey – I can't wait to see where this ends up also. I'm in high anticipation!

Bunnysquirrel – For someone with a fluffy name, I thought you would be more into that kind of thing. J/k, but I'm glad you appreciate my lack of all the intense romance for a second. I mean, it's kind of understandable absence with the Son of Trigon running around... right? Maybe they'll have some alone-time later...

1x1pEngUIn89 – I apologize for making you wait, but here's more for you. :)


	4. Memories

Holy Bejeebus!

Anyhow, I'm back, after a vacation…no a sabbatical (haha)  
Here's the next chapter, enjoy!

Review please!

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"His name is Edorchan. He is my half brother, and heir to the throne of Trigon the Terrible." Raven said in a monotone voice.

An eerie silence came over the group, but was broken suddenly by an outburst from…

"WHAT?"

…Beast Boy.

The others had similar looks, with Robin being characteristically unreadable, but Raven could feel his questions rise out of his mind almost uncontrolled, and silently thanked him for not voicing those questions.

The others were not so kind.

"Hold on, you have a brother?" Cyborg asked, holding both hands out as if to stop the idea with the gesture.

"Half brother." Raven corrected. "My mother had no other children."

"All right, all right, so he's your half-brother. Why is he here? And why did he waste Slade and attack us?"

Raven shook her uncovered head in confusion, "I need to meditate."

The blue cloaked girl walked off silently among protests from Cyborg and Beast Boy about not telling them anything, and being too closed up about important things. She pressed on, flustered, through the door as a concerned green-eyed alien caught up with her in the empty hallway.

"…Raven?" Starfire asked quietly.

Raven turned her full attention to her, knowing that she was being quite serious.

"Is your brother… like my sister?" She asked in a sad voice.

Raven stared at Starfire with a façade well practiced over the years.

"I don't know Star." _I hope not, _she thought.

She drew up her hood and phased through the remaining walls to her door. Safely inside, she ran to her mirror and picked it up. Staring into it, she found herself quickly in Nevermore, greeted by chaos.

Her emotions were going full tilt in her mind now, ranting and raving, wailing and sobbing (Happy was just ecstatic that Edorchan was back). Everything was out of control, so she shouted to her emotions to be quiet. It took several tries by her and Intelligence to get them all calm enough to resemble some sort of order, in the form of a disjointed semicircle formed around her. Rage stood off to the side, yet seemed more interested than she usually would have. Fear was next to her, face filled with terror. Opposite them, Happy was trying to console Timid, with little success as usual. Intelligence was flipping through one book or another, while Courage was boasting how she had stood up to Edorchan in the confrontation before.

And in the center of the semicircle was Guilt.

Raven blinked in confusion. Why was Guilt here? What could she possibly have to bring…

"_You left him._" The ill-colored emotion said quietly.

A cold chunk of what felt like ice formed in Raven's stomach. Guilt continued.

"You know what happened, when Father came all those years ago. When you fled from Azarath, and _abandoned _him." The voice was now full-fledged, lacking no drop of accusation.

"He told me to leave," Raven said finally, "We both knew what would happen."

"Is that your excuse? He told you to? You ran away and left him to our Father's tender mercies, and all you can say is that you were told to?" Guilt said incredulously.

Raven consciously unclenched her hands. These were her emotions, she controlled them. "No. I knew he was right. We couldn't beat Trigon."

"But we did beat our Father. We sent him back to Hell!" Courage asserted.

"And so the question still stands, _Raven_, why did you leave him?" Guilt crossed her arms, staring.

Raven felt the coldness lumped in her gut spread… she felt the horrible memory snap back…

_She heard the shouts of men and the screams and cries of the women and children. Yet she wasn't one of them. She wasn't saying anything at all. All she was doing, staring at Edorchan, was trying to understand what he was telling her._

_"Go." He said again._

_She shook her head. No way would she leave him here. She couldn't leave him here._

A terrible roar was heard in the distance. Nearby, members of the Azarathian Mage Guard stood firm, readying themselves against the fearsome intruder's approach. Their chants mingled with the chorus of cries in the distance, giving the setting an even more foreboding feel.

_"Raven," Edorchan spoke again, "Leave. Now. We both know what will happen if he catches us both. Go with Arella. Go to Earth, and be safe. Fight your destiny as I know you will. As I will fight mine."_

_Tears began to form, spilling out in small streaks on her cheeks. She looked him straight in his cloud-gray eyes, imploring him to come with him._

_She found her voice, "Please, don't make me go without you."_

_"Raven," He said, features softening, "You can make it. I know you can. You are strong, and you have the determination to make it."_

_"But if I am so strong, I should stay here and fight with you!" Raven half-shouted, half-pleaded._

_"No, Raven. It is not yet time for you to face your destiny, to make your choice. My time has come."_

_"How will I know the choices to make with no one to guide me?"_

_He chuckled softly. '_How could he laugh at a time such as this?' _She wondered._

_"You will find that help can come in strange ways, dear sister. Now go; do not waste any more precious time."_

_Stiffly, she walked toward her waiting mother, and began the enchantment that would transport her to Earth. Just when she was about to enter the blinding vortex, a looming figure appeared and unleashed a mighty roar that shook the ground. Edorchan, hands crackling with energy, readied himself for battle. The titanic figure stood to speak, and Edorchan risked a fleeting glance at Raven._

_"GO!" He shouted, and she dove through the portal, the last time she had ever seen her half-brother..._

When she had come out of her trance, she was still in Nevermore. Her emotions were now gone, leaving her and Intelligence alone in the vast expanse.

"I locked them up once more," Intelligence stated, pushing her glasses higher onto her nose, "But not all stay peacefully, I'm afraid."

After she left Nevermore, Raven sighed and wiped the tear streaks from her face. This was going to take a lot of meditation.

Shortly after, she heard a knock at her door. She sighed again, the weariness of the memory settling on her shoulders.

'_Arrgh…'_

_333333333333333333333333333 _

Robin was at Raven's door.

He couldn't help it. He was a detective, he needed answers. On the other hand, he understood that Raven needed her privacy. It was a delicate balance, a line he had walked for a long time.

Time to cross that line again, he decided, to see if he could get any answers.

He reached up his hand and knocked on her door.

Shortly after, it slipped open, and Raven was standing there, looking exhausted.

"Raven? Are you okay?" He asked, caught off-guard.

Her mouth opened to form a witty reply, but she couldn't get it past her lips. She looked at Robin, and knew that he was here for answers. Shaking her head no, she stepped back to let him inside.

"Where should I begin?" She said.

_33333333333333333333333333_

Deep in the bowels of the city, Edorchan sat in a meditative stance. The wound that Raven had given him had healed shortly after it was inflicted, leaving no trace of any harm she had done.

He was concentrating on an old trick, and a painful one, to give him a moment's peace from his demon side, so he could set in place assets that would be of great use to Raven, and perhaps even speak with her…

The prospect filled him with elation, though he clamped down on it quickly; he did not want to forewarn the voice inside of his intentions.

He could hear the darkness inside of him ranting and raving, and then began the process silently.

Then the memories came…

0101010101001111000000100101010

Author's note: Again, I apologize for not updating sooner, but here you go, I hope it is to your liking. I will do my utmost to update again soon.

Thanks to all my reviewers!


	5. Stories of the Gem and Heir, prt 1

Hello again, shadeofsound here.

I happen to have a habit of lengthly awayness, and what seems to me to be underdelievering. I made it into two parts because it was taking forever to finish and it was getting rather long to read. I really will try to finish this soon, so you can see what happens.

Enjoy!

---------------------------------------------------------

Robin had stepped inside Raven's room, and now faced her as she sat on her bed from his place leaning against a bare spot on her wall. He stared intently at the dark girl, thinking of what to ask her. 

"I want to know about Edorchan."

"He's my half brother, from a different mother." Raven stated, succinctly, feeling a little composure return to her.

"That's not what I meant, and you know it." Robin quickly said, knowing he couldn't let Raven hide this away. "I want to know his past, where he came from, and how Trigon had another child and we never heard about him until now."

Defeated by the persistence of her leader, Raven sighed, took a calming breath, and began…

---------------------------------------------------------

They flooded his mind, and Edorchan was almost overwhelmed by the power of his own nightmares. He rode through it, grasping tightly to the remains of his shattered mental center. The voice, which once was so prevalent, now lost its potency as it was taken into the swirling maelstrom of past experiences. Random memories of his past would play into his mind, experiences so powerfully emotional that they would distract and distance the voice and its influences from wresting control from him, if only for a time. He winced physically, straining to keep the tides of his emotions from lashing about. Windows and light bulbs shattered, strewing glass fragments everywhere. Concrete and rebar groaned, revealing the stresses the man's stray energies were placing on them.

Edorchan felt the first memories come to him. He dropped to a crouch, placing one hand on the ground to garner some support though the impending flashbacks…

And then they were upon him.

_  
He saw a vast expanse of cityscape in front of him. There was a great battle ensuing, with the valiant armies of the planet fighting against the demon forces of Trigon. Edorchan shook his head, knowing the outcome. There was not a resistance strong enough, nor army great enough, nor power mighty enough that could overcome the terrible conquering force of Trigon. _

'Not even me,' _he thought, with a sickening feeling in his stomach._

_He brought his attention back to the battle, now turning in favor of the defenders. He felt elation – oh if only they would win, he could be free! He resisted the pull to intervene, trying to give them any chance he could, until he felt a searing, mind splitting pain radiate from his forehead. Crying out involuntarily, he heard his father's voice speak to him as he gripped his head._

_"Now now, my _son_, what were your orders?"_

_The pain intensified even greater when he said 'orders'.  
_

"_I am your harbinger, your general," he felt himself say, "I am to destroy all those who will not submit."_

_He felt a sudden urge to vomit. He clamped down on that urge._

_"Is there a problem with those orders?"_

Edorchan willed himself silent. The voice became impatient.

_"You're not _answering, _Edorchan." It all but shouted._

_"No," Edorchan strained._

_"No what?" The voice of Trigon said. _

_"No. Sir." Edorchan bit out._

_"Better." The pain vanished as suddenly as he came. Edorchan lowered his hands to his sides._

_He turned back to the battlefield. The defenders were pushing their small advantage, and Edorchan felt the bittersweet hopefulness of their thoughts of victory._

_He looked down at his hands, soon to be drenched in blood.  
_

'There is no victory for them.' _He thought. _'Or me…'

_He went to the battle, to carry out his orders to the letter._

_The city was filled with the cries of soldiers joining battle anew, and soon after the shrill screams of women and children meeting their doom rose to mingle with them._

He was brought back to reality, and realized he was breathing hard. Steeling himself, he waited for the next flashback to come…

---------------------------------------------------------

"When I was six years old, the mages of Azarath came into custody of another child of Trigon. His mother had been struck with death in her home while he was away in meditation."

"Who killed her?" Robin interrupted.

"It was never determined by fact, and the doctors had put it down to irrepressible shame, but Edorchan had always thought that Trigon had killed her."

Robin nodded silently, and Raven continued.

"He first started living with the mages, who did not make much effort to help him live comfortably. They feared him much more than me, because though I could bring about Trigon, Edorchan was destined to carry on the horrific legacy. He was to forever follow in the footsteps of our accursed _father, _sending all life into oblivion."

"He and I were trained together, taught in the same basic teachings, until I was eight and he was ten. Then he was moved on by the mages into advanced studies, which I was also moved into two years later. He and I didn't get along at first, because we both hated our father enough that we hated anything to do with him, and that included each other. Then my mother, Arella, decided to take him into our home."

"You're mother must've been very compassionate." Robin observed.

"Yes, she was." Raven said quietly.

---------------------------------------------------------

The next flashback washed over Edorchan, whisking him away to another distant time and place.

_Edorchan had submitted to his fate, and theirs. They would die by his hand, falling like so many others. He said this to himself to stave off the guilt he felt when he couldn't stop the influences of Trigon, to stop the self-condemnation from eating him when his demon side had its way. He could not let emotions run him so wildly, even though the center he sought was nothing but tatters now.  
_

_He snapped out of his introverted thoughts and looked to the battlefield. The army of fiery demons lay beside and behind him, waiting for the signal to be released. They ceded to his command, fearing him as they would his father. The opposing army was deploying before them, setting up strategies and tactics to best defend their homes. Edorchan never used such plans, as his demon army was never shorthanded, nor did they have an obvious need for complex strategies, as anything they could not handle Edorchan would pass into oblivion. Today, though, Hell's General stood on the front lines, contemplating the combat that would soon take place. It was a change of pace from when would distance himself from the fighting, from the deaths he caused merely by summoning and ordering this horde of devil spawn._

_He would fully immerse himself in the front, to show that there was no difference between ordering a kill and killing someone personally. _

_He grasped his 'sword', which was merely a hilt. Channeling a portion of his energy into it, a blade consumed in fire formed, bearing markings that were similar in nature to the tattoos on his body. Pointing the newly formed sword towards the sky and thrusting it above his head, he gave a mighty cry that resounded throughout the valley chosen as the battlefield. The fire demons behind him replicated his shout, and their inhuman screams joined his cry. Pointing his sword forward, he led the black charge toward the heroic defenders. The legions behind him followed, creating a terrible thunderous noise that carried all the way to the hearts of the terrified mortals._

_The armies met with a rolling crash, and Edorchan enmeshed himself in the battle, letting bloodlust overtake him._

_A young soldier charged Edorchan, broadcasting his strike by swinging his sword above his head. Edorchan blocked it with a laugh and speared the young man through the heart. Another slashed at him, but was parried and Edorchan picked him up by the throat and threw him into the horde behind him. A great tearing and devouring of flesh was heard, along with a terrifying scream. Another came and was parted between the ribs by Edorchan's sword. A soldier attempted to block a strike from Edorchan, but the sword was shattered by the blazing weapon. This only went on for a short time until the mages and artillery of the other side engaged the battle. Their attacks cut through the demonic legions; the mighty explosions and thunder cracks giving the defending line strength, and they pushed harder against the horrific attackers. The line held, neither side budging an inch to the other, until Edorchan decided to take matters into his own hands. After slicing another foolish soldier across the throat, he hovered high into the air. Hands crackling with power, he felt the aim of the mages and artillery shift to him. He smirked._

'So that was their plan!' _He thought, as the first volley flew towards him._

_The volley displayed terrible power, and for a moment, all was fire around him. Soon, however, the flames cleared and showed that Edorchan was still alive, without scratch or burn. He opened his hands and the errant dark lightning shot forth, consuming both friend and foe. A black tendril of power tore along the ground, leaving hundreds dead in its wake. Another traced along the artillery and mage's division, leaving only the strongest mages – who could barely shield themselves – alive. Lightning grazed the ground with greater intensity, leaving more dead in its wake. Finally satisfied with the destruction, Edorchan raised his hands above his head, easily summoning his energies enough to lay waste to the entire battle area and annihilate the stragglers. He stretched his hands down towards the battleground, and turned the entire valley and beyond to ash in a roiling maelstrom, consuming the earthy arena…_

Edorchan realized he was sweating when he came back, but could barely recover before the next flashback came.

-----------------------------------------------------

"The first few weeks, even months, were oppressive. We barely spoke with civility towards one another, or at all. Edorchan was always very respectful towards Mother, but we kept our distance from each other."

Robin chuckled internally at the thought of the quiet chaos that two irate Raven-types could cause, given enough incentive.

"One day, however, I was resting between the monks teachings by walking through of the gardens near to the monastery. There were others of Azarath there, of course, but the monastery main floor and gardens were open to the people. I tried to stay unnoticed, but that was not what the people had in mind for me. They stared, and pointed me out to one another. I could hear their whispers to each other; _"There she is, the one who will bring about Scath."_ Parents whispered to their children, and I could feel their terror. I kept my calm, and walked about minding my own, trying to shut out their thoughts and feelings, which were turning from fear to jeering. Then, as I walked alone, Edorchan suddenly appeared by my side, and he looked away from me _at_ them. I could feel their apprehension, but they quickly left us well alone, with only the occasional stare and the odd whisper or two. We reached a place I believed that we could talk in, for once, and I stopped and asked him why he came to help me. I'll never forget what he said.

" 'Because no matter how we seem to despise ourselves and each other, they seem to detest us more.'

"It just stuck with me then, that he had admitted that much to me for the first time we ever talked. From that day on, we often walked together when we were given leave to rest from the monks' teachings. We wouldn't say much early on, just enjoy that for once, at least one person didn't emanate hatred or loathing of us. As time went on we talked more, mostly about the teachings I had that day, and what was the best way to apply them to further learning." Raven smiled a tiny smile, "It was nice to have someone a little older than me to relate to, to share with. Then something happened that changed everything even further."

Robin raised one eyebrow to urge her to continue, "What happened?"

"Usually when we walked, he'd keep his face forward or looking at someone else to keep them away, but then he started looking at _me_. His chilled acceptance of me was replaced with a warmer feeling, sort of like family. It was then he and I became true siblings, and life at home became much easier. Mother even spoke to me about it, stating that she had known all along that it would happen."

Robin nodded; he didn't expect to get such a prolonged response from Raven about something so private. It was refreshing, to say the least - though the times they were again faced with surely demanded quick answers to tough questions.

"So, you didn't hate him?" Robin asked.

"No I didn't!" Raven's eyes widened slightly, "What gave you that impression?"

"The way you reacted to Cyborg when he said something about Edorchan being your brother." Robin stated.

"Oh, well, that would be unfair to my mother, wouldn't it?"

Robin thought it over, "Yes, it would." and smiled.

---------------------------------

A/N

Whew.

That's only the first part. I hope to continue this soon. Thanks to all my new reviewers and my faithful ones who keep coming back despite all these waiting periods!  



	6. Stories of the Gem and Heir, prt 2

**(author's note) Haha! I have returned! In my opinion, it's been too long. Anywho, here's the second part of previous chapter, maybe I'll merge them someday, but not at the moment. It was a long uphill battle with this one, and there were points where I thought I'd hate it if I posted it as it was. But it all worked out in the end, and I'm altogether happy with what this has turned into. Please enjoy!  
(end a/n)  
**

Slade was ... disoriented, yet he still came to being aware of his surroundings. Blinking trough the haze and blurred vision, he saw the pit he was in, again. He looked up to the top, and saw the blazing flames and acrid smoke drifting across the opening, and the smell of sulfur and burning flesh drifted down and invaded his nostrils. A sound drew his attention to the top of the pit, where two demons were arguing over the noisy din of souls suffering in eternal damnation.

It did not sound pretty, nor could he understand them. His focus snapped back to the bottom of his pit, where he could see small flames just beginning to lick his body. Before they could engulf his entire body, he felt himself being torn upwards from the pit. At the top he found that the two demons from before had taken him out of his little hell-hole.

One of the demons turned to him and grinned, and this did not give Slade a good feeling about his immediate future. The other one mimicked the expression, and dug his claws a little deeper into his still-armored skin.

They led him through a field of pits like the one he was pulled from; he heard the cries and screams of agony from a thousand tortured souls, to which the devils next to him paid no mind.

They led him deeper and deeper into the fiery pits, until they came to a throne. The figure on it was only dimly lit by the flames spiraling out of the holes in the ground, though Slade figured out who it was as soon as he heard the voice.

"Welcome back, _Slade_."

Four eyes glowed red in the darkness as cruel laughter echoed over the strangled cries of victims in the pits.

-----------------------------------------------------

Robin carefully regarded Raven, who had told him straightforwardly and completely what he had wanted to know, almost.

"Raven, there's still more I want to know about Edorchan."

She nodded silently.

He sighed; he really didn't like prying like this. It felt wrong. "I need to know what we're dealing with here. What are we facing this time? What are his goals?"

She pressed her lips into a thin line. "I don't know what he's after, or why he's here, but he's very powerful. You saw a portion of it today, when he took out those robots and Slade. We need to be very careful about fighting him, if we do at all."

"We beat Trigon. His son shouldn't be too bad."

She frowned a little. "Edorchan is Trigon's heir. He's much stronger than Trigon was when we fought him. On top of that, Edorchan didn't waste his power breaking out of an age-old dimensional prison to get here. It's going to be a much different trial now."

"Maybe," Robin punched a fist into his palm, "but we haven't met anyone that we haven't been able to beat yet."

"Maybe we've just been lucky." Raven quipped.

"Well, luck is really nothing more than just raw skill combined with an excellent opportunity to apply it; hopefully, we'll get lucky again." Robin smiled.

Raven smiled a little; count on Robin's virtually unflappable optimism to… well, never _flap._

Robin got off the wall, and moved to leave. Before he reached the door, he turned back to Raven.

"There's one more thing I need to know, Raven. How have we not heard of Edorchan until now?"

Raven rose from her bed.

"Honestly, Robin; I didn't even know he was still alive until now."

Robin nodded, "Well, if there's anything else you remember, or that you want to tell me about him, don't hesitate. I want to hear whatever you have to say, even if it's just old memories."

"I will."

Robin left Raven's room, and Raven allowed herself to collapse back onto her bed.

_'Where have you been, Edorchan? Why have you been gone so long?'_

She drifted into sleep. Falling deeper into her dreams, she found herself in a familiar field of flowers…

-----------------------------------------------------

Edorchan was sweating profusely now, and his fingers had ripped lines into the floor beneath him. He couldn't ponder that for long until…

_The cityscape was ablaze, people running, screaming, crying – fathers looking for their families, and young children wailing for their parents. Edorchan's army, which he had created to replace the fire demons of his father, was tearing across every which way, literally. Edorchan walked down the street and saw his soldiers dispatching a group of resisters armed with whatever they could find. One man swung his weapon at the head of his closest adversary, only to have it caught and lifted up, the man along with it. The black demon grinned, showing sharp teeth, before thrusting a clawed fist through his ribcage._

_Edorchan moved on, walking slowly, observing the effectiveness of his new army. A few more blocks down, the fighting and chaos had moved on and away, leaving it relatively quiet. Windblown leaves rustled down the street and a piece of loose glass fell and shattered onto the pavement. A frightened whimper drew his attention to an alley, which he then walked down. When he got to the end, he found a small child – a girl – and a woman huddled together. His feet scuffed the ground, and they looked up, terror in their eyes. The complete fear that was radiating from them startled him, giving him pause. He wanted nothing more than to go back and pretend he never saw them, to leave the alley and then the planet, but the voice stopped him before he could leave._

'What do you think you are doing?' _It hissed._

'Leaving.'

'I don't think so. Turn around and _kill_ them!'

_Edorchan gritted his teeth. _'No!'

'What?' _It said incredulously,_ 'Don't remember how?'

_He felt his arm move of its own volition. _

'I'll just have to remind you, then.' _It taunted._

_He slammed his other hand down to keep it from pointing at the two innocents. His eyes darted left and right, looking for a way for them to escape. There wasn't. The two victims looked at him in horror, despair flooding their emotions._

_"Mommy I'm scared," The little girl cried, "make him go away."_

"_I know, I know, baby. C'mere and hold on to Mommy." The mother said, hiding her child's eyes with her body. Tears were streaming down her pale face, and her lips were trembling. The child was sobbing into her mother's shirt._

_Then Trigon decided to join in._

_"Kill them, Edorchan." His voice resonated through Edorchan's skull._

_"No!" He strained._

"_Do not disobey me, boy." Searing pain blossomed from Edorchan's forehead and quickly spread.  
_

'Kill them. Do it. Kill them. _Now._' The voice said, urging him on.

'No! I won't…' _He was faltering; his restraining hand had moved to his forehead. His vision was blurring because of the pain, and he could feel his energy concentrating in his outstretched hand. The voice began laughing, and was soon joined by his father. He _knew_ what they were going to do: torture them mercilessly just to spite him. He couldn't let them do it; he _had _to stop it from happening._

_The powers kept building, and the pain kept on growing. He couldn't think, couldn't find any strength to stop them._

_"NO!" He screamed._

_At the last second, before they could force him to do anything to the girl and her mother, he opened up, pouring his powers through his hand and blasted a hole through them for miles behind. When it was all over, there was nothing left._

_And he was still screaming.   
_

_In his frenzy, he obliterated the planet – turning all to fire and ruin. _

He came to and found his throat had gone raw. His hands were digging into his scalp. Hair was sticking to his face and neck, which were covered in fresh sweat. Tears had somehow found a way out of his eyes and were now mingling with the salt water already there. Everything at that moment was unbearable; the voice inside was ranting and raving, trying everything – his mind was in utter disarray until –

_He walked down the royal halls, the white walls and shiny armor of the guards contrasting his black and tattered robe. The door to the King's court opened in front of him, allowing him inside. The occupants rose from their seats at the sight of the tattoo-covered man, and the King rose from his throne._

_"What is the meaning of this?" One of the senior council members demanded._

_"Presenting the emissary of the Dark Demon Trigon." An accompanying sentinel announced._

_Gasps and murmurs were sparked like wildfire at that statement, but soon after the king raised his hand._

_"Enough!" The murmurings ceased. _

_The king turned to Edorchan. "Why are you here?"_

_Edorchan looked around the room. "My lord has instructed me to conquer this planet, and enslave all of its denizens. Resistance is futile," He looked at the king, "submit or die."_

_Again the murmuring outbreak occurred, this time punctured by a young councilman shouting, "We will fight you! We will defeat you and your demon lord!"_

_Edorchan waved a hand dismissively. "Unlikely. I have witnessed many mighty planets succumb by my hands. What makes yours any different?"_

_One brash nobleman drew his sword and rushed Edorchan._

_"You sick bastard!"_

_He raised his blade for a killing thrust, but when he struck, Edorchan raised an open hand, encasing the sword and hand wielding it in black energy. _

"_Are you in such a hurry to die?" Edorchan asked the surprised swordsman._

_He raised his free hand and struck his assailant in the chest with a telekinetic wave, sending him skidding across the polished floor. He collided with the far wall, unconscious. _

_The king, having witnessed the exchange, called for his chamber guards to remove the comatose noble. He then ordered the chamber to be emptied, leaving him alone with Trigon's emissary. When the Sergeant-at-Arms objected, the king replied strongly, "If he wanted to harm any of us, he would have done so by now."_

_Thus, the throne room was left empty, and the king stepped down from the elevated throne onto the marble floor. Walking toward Edorchan, he gestured to the large table that the councilmen and nobles had previously occupied._

_"Care to sit?"_

_"No." Edorchan said coldly._

_"Very well." The king sighed. "I will tell you now, though; we will not surrender to you, or any other."_

_"That's idiotic. You will die. Why not save your own lives and give up?" Edorchan asked, puzzled._

_The king smirked, "We are a free people, and I am merely their king; I am also a free man."_

_He looked at Edorchan with fierce determination. "We will not be slaves to you or any other. We are born free, and we will die the same."_

Edorchan frowned. "You cannot hope to win, your highness. No power has stood against the armies of darkness and survived. I would know; I lead them. Your pointless idealism will be the cause of the meaningless extinction of your people."

_"You don't get it, emissary. I lead them, I don't rule them. We will fight not because of my ideals, but the ideals of the people. We will not submit to the evils that Trigon would unleash upon our people, of the chains and bonds that he would cast on us, or the atrocities that he would perform upon us if we let him capture us."_

_He regarded Edorchan again. "What of you, emissary? If you are powerful enough to survive as many battles as you claim, what do you gain from serving such a master?"_

_Edorchan quickly wiped the slight look of shock from his face and replied, "I don't serve him. I am his harbinger."_

_His eyes hardened. "I am his heir. I have no choice but to submit to my destiny of destruction."_

_"Ah, that's who you really are. Well, I can tell you that it's not true. You can always make a choice. Like now, you've chosen to give up, and accept a fate that doesn't have to be yours. You chose to give up your hope."  
_

"_I have no choice. There are none who can stand against him." _

"_So you let it happen?"_

_"No! I've fought it before!"_

_"And lost? So after so many times, you gave up? Does that really mean there is no hope, or does it mean that you have given it up?"_

_Edorchan was silent for a time. The king spoke again. _

"_The true nature of hope, heir, is that you can never give it up in order for it to succeed. You always have to fight to keep it. Eventually, it will break through. Perhaps we will die, but I will not give up on that _hope_ that we will triumph. I will not surrender, and allow my people to be pulled into suffocating darkness."  
_

"_Perhaps, maybe you are right." Edorchan said, but was quickly cut off by pain blossoming in his forehead. He started to go down, but caught himself and stood shakily. He grimaced a smile and said._

"_It's been a long time since I've had any sort of hope. Maybe this battle can be won. Goodbye, wise king. I cannot fight it here." Vision blurring again, Edorchan found enough focus to teleport far out of the king's throne room._

Snapping back into reality, breathing normally, Edorchan listened for awhile, to see if he could hear. It was quiet for once, calm in his mind. He couldn't hear the evil voice inside him poking and prodding him incessantly. Thankful to the powers that be, he got up and took a deep breath.

He was _free_.

Knowing from past experience, he wasted no time getting things together. He _had_ to talk to Raven and let her know what was happening. Wait. He couldn't talk to Raven; what if she wouldn't listen? Mulling it over in his head, he decided that he would have to risk it. It would have to wait, however; in the brief contact with Slade before he killed him, he had seen the other's life 'flash before his eyes' through the telepathic bond he had inadvertently caused by the contact. He remembered seeing one particular blond girl, who had killed him denying his control of her. Knowing that Raven would need all the allies she could obtain for the coming battle, he headed off to a certain cave, hoping to find anything that would help…


	7. Chapter 7

**Hooray! Another chapter and it's a long one. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I own the plot, Edorchan, and this rather interesting piece of lint in my pocket. All others are (c) someone else.**

** (edit - I had to fix some of the errors that managed to pop up while posting. Sorry if this pops up in your inboxes twice --)  
**

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Raven was confused. Why was she in Happy's field of flowers? She groaned inwardly; dealing with Happy was the last headache she wanted to deal with now – or ever, for that matter.

She started walking out into the pasture with a slightly less than enthusiastic attitude; it would be better to get this over with than allow Happy to have enough time to hit any sort of stride...

Raven shuddered slightly at the thought.

She wandered a little aimlessly, knowing that Happy was rather irrational, and wouldn't be very cooperative if Raven was being too much like Intelligence – direct, to the point, and boring. It wasn't too long, however, until Raven was able to pick out Happy from the nauseatingly bright flowers that dominated her realm.

'_Her pink cloak is like camouflage in here…'_

Happy was cheerfully sitting on a rock, mindlessly picking petals from a large yellow flower. Raven could pick up a little of something she was saying to herself.

"Maybe so… maybe not. Maybe so… maybe not…"

She said that a few more times, then trailed off as Raven approached. Raven looked at the flower that her exuberant emotion was holding and saw that there were only three petals left.

"What are you doing?" Raven asked her perkier self.

"Oh nothing. I'm just trying to figure something out…" Happy said distractedly.

"With a flower." Said Raven dryly.

"Yup." Happy beamed. "It's a yes or no kinda thing. But I'm gonna leave it for later; it's more fun that way." She laid the flower on a flat spot on the rock.

Raven looked at the three-petaled flower and raised an eyebrow. "Why don't you just figure it out by counting? There are only three petals left. You don't even have to pluck them."

"No, _silly_," She giggled, "It's so boring to figure it all out before it happens."

"Whatever." Raven droned.

"You're no fun at all." Happy stuck out her tongue at Raven childishly.

"And you're a spastic goofball," Raven retorted, "Why am I here at all? What possible use could being here have?"

Happy's smile shrank a little, and she seemed to get a little more maturity. Raven was surprised at the _wistfulness_ that the smile seemed to carry.

"Do you remember this field Raven?" Happy quietly said.

"Yes," Raven said carefully, "I have to see it every time I have to talk to you."

"No I mean do you_remember_ this field? Why it's here?" Happy lowered her head a little, as if the words she was saying were fragile, "Why it's my field?"

---------------------------------

Edorchan arrived at the cave that he had seen in Slade's mind. Looking around, he wondered what he would find here to help Raven, even if it was anything at all. A statue in the distance caught his attention, and he moved up to study it for awhile.

'_What purpose do these flowers serve?' _He pondered, _'And what of this inscription?' _

He crouched down to get a better look; dust had settled on the words, obscuring the message. He cleared most of it away with a couple of dedicated hand swipes, and read the engraving on the pedestal.

_TERRA_

_A TEEN TITAN  
A TRUE FRIEND_

_  
_He looked back up at the statue. _A memorial? _He thought. The statue was very detailed; he could see the textures of the figure's skin. The lines flowed perfectly in proportioned for the portrayal of humans, and the flaws in bodily structure were perfectly lifelike. Out of curiosity, he reached out to touch one of the figure's arms. His fingers just grazed the stone when he was shocked. A flash of thought so fast that he almost missed it flew through the point of contact.

'_Powerful emotions were here,' _He thought, _'For that spark to exist.'  
_

He reached out again, firmly taking hold of the statue's arm. Nothing happened though, and Edorchan felt the hopelessness of his situation creep into his calm. He _had _to find something for Raven, to help her. The anxious half-demon stormed around the cavern, trying to find the equipment, the tools, anything that he had seen in the mercenary's mind. He searched and searched, but all that he could find was already destroyed – covered in stone. Foiled, he slammed his fists on the ruined machinery in frustration, the vibrations shaking loose tufts of dust from the ceiling, sending them falling to the floor in quiet noise. The room was silent again, until almost quietly, even to his empathic powers, he felt a _thump whump _from the statue. He could hear a very tiny voice calling out, echoing across infinity.

'_Where am I?'_

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Raven just stood in the nauseatingly bright field of flowers. Had Happy just been _wistful?_ She needed to meditate more, right now, before anything else came to screw with the natural order of things. Happy gestured over to a part of the field where the flowers were different than the normal 'eye-bleeding' pink.

"Don't you remember Raven? Why this is my field? When Edorchan took us out away from everyone to show that you _could_ let me out? That you could laugh a little?"

That field _did_ look familiar…

_Edorchan had taken a smaller Raven out for their rest in between schoolings in the monastery. No one knew where they were going, because not even the monks liked to question Edorchan very much, given the cold stare he would usually give in response._

_So they headed out into a field of flowers, in full bloom. Edorchan had promised her that he would teach her something very important here, and Raven tried to guess what it could be._

_Could it be a new, all powerful technique that Edorchan had again gleaned from his understanding of the teaching of the monks?_

_Could it be the way to defeat their accursed Father, freeing them from their horrid destinies?  
_

"_If you keep trying to figure it out before it happens, Raven, you'll just keep running around in circles."_

_Raven looked up in surprise, "I thought you wouldn't read minds; it's an invasion of privacy."_

_Edorchan smiled a little, "I wasn't reading your mind. Your face gave it all away."_

_She frowned at him, "My face never gives anything away."_

"_To those that don't know you well enough. Your mother could tell exactly what words you thoughts produced if she saw you like that."_

_She fixed him with a 'playful' glare. Edorchan sighed, "I might've cheated a little, but the advice still stands."_

_She gave a smug look in her victory, "So will you tell me now?"_

"_No."_

"_Humph."  
_

_They continued on, until they had reached a peaceful field of flowers. Edorchan looked around, searching for any eavesdroppers or spying eyes. Satisfied with his circumspection, he turned back to Raven. _

"_We're here. Sit." Edorchan sat down in the field lotus style and closed his eyes. Raven likewise sat and assumed her meditative stance. They took their breaths, and relapsed into the state of mind they knew well. All was still, the only noise coming from the wind rustling gently through the meadow. Now they did not speak, but relied only on the link that they shared._

'_Raven, you know of the center that the monks teach you?'_

'_Yes, I have been doing much to master it since they showed me when I was far younger.'_

'_Good – it is important to remember. However, there is something else I want to show you that will seem to make no sense. You will have to trust me, Raven.'_

_A pause, 'I trust you, Edorchan.' _

'_Good. Now laugh.'_

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Robin was at the Teen Titans' main computer, trying to ascertain the point of the attack that Edorchan has viciously dealt out to Slade earlier. The Boy Wonder scanned all the footage that they had on the subject, which included some from one of the destroyed sladebots that he had managed to find reasonably intact and sensor readings and video from Cyborg's sensors. Traffic cameras gave an objective view of the action, albeit at much less quality than desirable.

It all amounted to about seven minutes, thirty-seven seconds, and twenty-three milliseconds of the incident – discounting the overlap time.

He watched the entire incident again using all available perspectives, from Edorchan's materialization to Raven blasting him into the faraway building. He let the traffic camera footage play on, and saw that indeed Edorchan was still alive, and still a threat. The camera footage lost sight of him after that.

He looked at the confrontation points, where Edorchan had displayed his powers and skill. The first, when he destroyed hundreds of the androids with one smooth motion, was apparently a feat of immense skill according to Raven. The next, when he pounded Cinderblock into the pavement with a telekinetic blast, was a show of his power which Raven had mentioned. Slade's death was next, and though the technique or power used was unfamiliar to him, he did make a mental note to avoid grappling attacks on this particular foe. The final show of great force was the attack on Raven, though the detective immediately noticed that the blast was nothing like the one he had used on Cinderblock – like he was holding back something. The obvious pause also supported this theory. He hadn't paused like that for the other attacks...

Wait. Yes he did.

He rewound the footage back to Slade's death. There was a considerable amount of seconds in between when he grabbed Slade's head and when the attack occurred. Maybe something happened there.

The Boy Wonder enhanced the images that lay before him until the algorithms began to degrade on all but Cyborg's. He watched as the telekinetic's lips moved, but didn't hear what he had said. He pulled up the audio file and began to filter out much of the background and static, dialed up the gain, and then could make out fairly well what Edorchan had said.

"…..Trigon sends you, _betrayer, _his regards…"

Now **there** was something…

--------------------0------------

Edorchan turned back to the statue. He discounted the possibility that it was some one or thing else in the room that had been the source of that thought; he would've felt any new arrivals before they even arrived. Stepping closer to the statue, he strained to hear anything else from the oddity.

_Thump whump. _The sound again – it was strangely like a heartbeat.

Was this a living statue?

_Thump whump. Thump whump. Thumpwhump. Thumpwhump. Thwhump Thwhump Thwump…_

The noise was gaining momentum. The same voice floated across the abyss.

'_Where am I? Why can't I see anything?' _

Edorchan reached out and placed a gentle hand on the figure. Sure enough, he could feel the heartbeat within, and the warmth radiating from under the stone. He was tempted to just pull the person out from the statuesque prison, but thought better of it as he saw cracks spider webbing across the form. The cracks were soon followed by tremors, which shook off thin layers that made it appear as if a creature was shedding its granite skin. The voice was intense when it spoke again.

'_Why can't I breathe?' _Edorchan felt panic rise from the being, _'Why can't I move?'_

Edorchan reached with his senses, probing the stone armoring the suffocating person, and found it thinning. He was relieved, and then stretched out to the unknown individual, _'Do not give into panic. Keep fighting. You are almost at the end.'_

'_The end of what?'_The voice countered, _'Who are you?'_

'_Pointless questions which at the moment will kill you by wasting your precious time,' _Edorchan allowed slight irritation to seep into the connection, _'you must move forward.'_

'_I'll try…'_The strong reply came.

-------------------------0---------------

'_Laugh? Why?' Raven was genuinely puzzled. Edorchan had never cracked so much as a smirk on the way here. In fact, she hadn't traced any scent of an amused emotion all day. It wasn't to say that Edorchan never found anything funny. Quite the contrary; he found many things amusing in his own dark manner, though he had wisely learned to keep his strange humor to himself, and not show it to others easily. _

'_Because, Raven; we do it so rarely I fear we may forget how to feel it.' Edorchan's voice resonated with sorrow._

'_But we were told and trained that any emotion felt could possibly bring about our Father.' The prospect chilled Raven to her core._

'_I know Raven, but you have to know that it is okay to feel joy, for it is companion to the antithesis of our Father.' Edorchan replied._

'_I don't even know if I can.' Raven's smallish reply drifted forward. _

'_Then I'll help you,' Edorchan encouraged. Raven felt Edorchan bring memories to their bond: of his pride when he witnessed Raven's mastery of telekinesis by moving several large stones in a tandem dance, when they flew together for the first time, soaring far above the ugly feelings of those who would scorn them. Then there was one, when they were all sitting down at the dinner table – Arella, Raven, and Edorchan – when Raven finally felt the unadulterated joy of who he was at that moment; he wasn't a destined harbinger of death, but an older brother, and a male figure in a home that by all rights was the most likely candidate to become broken, yet was stronger than even the picturesque perfections that Azarath would champion as the epitome of what was right. Raven began to giggle a little, and then laugh louder as warm, comforting, peaceful feelings began to flow through her body – joy and love. Soon one of the flowers nearby exploded with a soft '_poof'_, causing Raven to cover her mouth and cease her laughter. Edorchan turned and spoke through their bond._

'_Don't worry, Raven; the flowers are laughing too.' Edorchan began to chuckle, which then caused Raven to giggle, which then began the chain reaction to where they both were laughing uncontrollably with joy. Soon the landscape was adorned with petals of flowers, with more falling from the sky like snowflakes; Raven, who was laying spread-eagled, exhausted – turned her head to Edorchan and spoke without using the mental link._

"_So that is what joy is?"_

_Edorchan, also breathing heavily, smiled, "Yes, Raven; it is."_

_They both lay down contentedly, watching the breezes sweep through the landscapes…_

-----------------------

Edorchan watched, impressed, as the stone figure struggled against her prison; the cracks were getting larger and he could see skin as the stone began fragmenting with louder sound and more quantity in material removed. Finally one of the arms of the stone statue gave, unsheathing a young girl's arm. It violently thrust out into the open air before it, followed closely by its complementary appendage. The two arms promptly set to work tearing at the stone covering the face, gripping just ahead of the ears and rending it from the young girl with desperate strength. With a shout of triumph and exhaustion, the stone from her face finally gave out to the effort, and flew across the room – released of its bond. The rest of the stone wilted and crumbled, as if the force sustaining its grip on the teenager had drained away. She slumped forward, panting, exhausted from the effort of escaping. Edordchan quickly gathered her up in his arms to prevent her from striking the floor as she lost the strength to stand. The young woman nodded dumbly in thanks before succumbing to exhaustion.

-----------------------

Robin decided – after watching the tape over countless times and memorizing, analyzing, and categorizing every half-second – that he needed to speak to Raven once more about the seemingly innocuous pause that occurred before Edorchan attacked her. He was deep in thought one his way up to her room when Cyborg stepped from behind the corner, almost causing a collision between the two. Robin raised an eyebrow in question when Cyborg held out a hand to stop him.

"What's wrong?" Robin queried.

"She's sleeping. I just ran a check on her, to make sure she wasn't going to attempt to play the lone savior again." Cyborg said.

"I need more questions answered; she can do that much, right?"

Cyborg sighed, "Look, Robin; I know that this presents a new big case for us. These last few weeks chasing Slade around right after the **world ended** have pretty much guaranteed us very little sleep and very little rest though. The last thing that we need to do is to take out our two key analytical minds by letting you two run each other into the ground."

He crossed his arms and continued, "You're bad enough by yourselves anyway; put you two together and it's a wonder that either of you sleep."

"What are you saying exactly?" Robin crossed his arms and tilting his head sharply.

Cyborg gave a look that – in no uncertain terms – stated_you-know-exactly-what-I'm-saying-Bird-Brain_.

"So is that a recommendation for the leader to sleep as well?" Robin sighed, undoing his arms. There was no circumventing this obstacle; Cyborg was understandably tenacious about these things.

"You bet your grease-bowled head; don't sit up there and read, either. Rest. Sleep. I'll stand watch." Cyborg's chin looked like it was etched out of stone.

Robin nodded slowly, accepting this decision by his friend and second in command, "See you in an hour, then."

Robin turned and walked back down the hallway toward the elevator. He heard Cyborg call after him.

"Make it two."

Robin grinned.

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"Did you really think that you could escape me, Slade?" The thunderous voice boomed across the field of flames, "Did you think you had won and all would be _forgotten_?"

"I was hoping that you didn't survive our last encounter, Trigon." Slade said, managing to inject the cool analytical tone into his voice that was so familiar.

"Hope is unlike you, former slave!" Trigon laughed a deep, resounding guffaw that shook the cavern and made the demons huddle in fear. As their master continued to laugh, the demons began to cackle with him, their hyena-like voices rising to mingle with the din. Trigon ceased the noise with a raise of his hand, and again turned his attentions to his returning prisoner.

"As you can see, hope has availed you _nothing_. Again you are here, under my power and in _my_ domain. No deals will be made with _you_, former slave. No chance will be given to escape and to ruin my upcoming plans. Abandon all _hope _that you will escape and embrace the coming pain and agonies that will befall you. I am omnipotent, omniscient - all knowing, all seeing, all powerful. No one can thwart my plans. You will be tortured here, a testament to this fact, as a showpiece to me and my designs."

The four red eyes in the dimness narrowed, "No one can double cross me and succeed, Slade; you will be educated on this point for many millennia to come."

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**So there's really no way to plausibly explain the lack of updating I've managed to do. I hope you've enjoyed this and thanks to my continuing reviewers for sticking with me and all the favs and alerts I've managed to pick up despite my inactivity **

**Later! (though hopefully not very much later)**

**SoS23**


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